Man sentenced in road rage incident

WEST CHESTER – A Delaware County man who ran over a West Goshen attorney will spend six months behind bars at Chester County Prison as part of his sentence for the assault.

But Michael S. Galenski of Thornton may spend a much longer period under court supervision as he pays off almost $81,000 in restitution to his victim, who suffered a myriad of physical injuries from the incident that occurred outside his South New Street home.

Judge William Mahon on Thursday sentenced an apologetic Galenski to three to six months in county prison on the single charge of simple assault by physical menace, followed by 18 months supervised probation. But Mahon said he would not grant Galenski parole until he had served the maximum six months, and ordered him to pay $80,946 for the out of pocket and insurance expenses suffered by his victim, Kevin Vitelli.

“You set in motion the situation that led to the injuries suffered by Mr. Vitelli,” Mahon told Galenski, who was flanked in the courtroom by his attorney, Samuel Stretton of West Chester. “This is a perfect example of what happens when people lose control.”

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When Stretton raised the possibility that Galenski, who is self-employed, may not be able to pay the full amount he owes at the end of his two-year-long sentence, Mahon said that issue would be addressed in the future. If he is behind in his payments, it is possible his probation would be extended, Mahon suggested.

Galenski was found guilty at trial in September of hitting Vitelli with his Volvo station wagon following a dispute over tailgating in 2011. The jury acquitted him of the serious felonies of aggravated assault and attempted homicide.

Stretton had argued that Vitelli was hit due to his own actions and that his client never intended to do him any physical harm. He said the case was an example of a rush to judgment, claiming that responding officers assumed Vitelli was the victim due to the severity of his injuries.

“He (Vitelli) was in the middle of the street, he put himself there,” Stretton said. “My client had no intent to hurt Mr. Vitelli, he was trying to get away.”

But the prosecutor in the case, First Assistant District Attorney Michael Noone, questioned Galenski’s decisions in the moments leading up to the incident. “This was not just an accident. This was a crash, and this was a crime,” Noone said.

Galenski’s car had hopped up over a curb and struck Vitelli while he was on a sidewalk in front of his house, investigators said.

Noone had sought a lengthy term of imprisonment for Galenski at Thursday’s sentencing, as well as asking for Vitelli’s medical bills and insurance costs to be paid. Mahon denied Galenski’s request for an opportunity to get work release during his prison sentence.

In his statement to the court and to Vitelli, who was seated in a front row seat of Mahon’s courtroom, Galenski said he had never meant to hurt his victim.

“If I could take time back, I would take back what happened,” Galenski said. “I am deeply sorry for his injuries. I don’t go around trying to hurt people. I do not take this lightly.”

Galenski, who was accompanied by family members at the sentencing, began his prison term immediately.